UK National Archives

A rare copy of the Declaration of Independence was discovered by the UK National Archives in the papers of an 18th-century Royal Navy captain. The discovery was made by volunteer Michael Scurr while reviewing the captain's letters.

A rare copy of the Declaration of Independence was discovered by Michael Scurr at the UK National Archives while examining the letters of an 18th-century Royal Navy captain. The discovery was made during his 11 years of volunteering there.

A rare copy of the Declaration of Independence was discovered by Michael Scurr at the UK National Archives while examining the letters of an 18th-century Royal Navy captain. The document was found among papers from a captured US ship.

A rare early copy of the Declaration of Independence, printed in Exeter, New Hampshire, was discovered by UK National Archives volunteer Michael Scurr in the papers of an 18th-century Royal Navy captain. The document, one of 11 known Exeter printing copies and the only one outside the US, was captured from the American privateer Dalton in 1776.

A rare copy of the Declaration of Independence was discovered by Michael Scurr, a volunteer at the UK National Archives, while reviewing documents from an 18th-century Royal Navy captain's papers. The document was found among letters related to a captured US ship.

A rare early copy of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, printed in Exeter in July 1776, was discovered by UK National Archives volunteer Michael Scurr in the papers of an 18th-century Royal Navy captain. The document, one of 11 known Exeter printings and the only one found outside the U.S., was attached to a report on the capture of the American privateer Dalton in 1776.

A rare early copy of the Declaration of Independence, printed in Exeter, New Hampshire, in 1776, was discovered by UK National Archives volunteer Michael Scurr in the papers of an 18th-century Royal Navy captain. The document, one of 11 known Exeter printing copies and the only one outside the U.S., was attached to a report on the capture of the American privateer Dalton.

A rare early copy of the Declaration of Independence, printed in Exeter, New Hampshire, was discovered by UK National Archives volunteer Michael Scurr among documents related to the 1776 capture of an American privateer ship. The document, one of 11 known copies of the Exeter printing, was found attached to a report on the capture of the Dalton, an 18-gun privateer operating under the Continental Congress.

A rare copy of the Declaration of Independence was discovered by UK National Archives volunteer Michael Scurr in documents from an 18th-century Royal Navy captain. The document, part of the Exeter printing from July 1776, is one of 11 known copies and the only one outside the United States. It was found attached to a report on the capture of the American privateer Dalton.